Tiger Woods Pulls Out of the British Open

Tiger Woods officially withdrew from the British Open on Friday.

The R&A’s brief announcement read: “Tiger Woods has withdrawn from The Open and is replaced by Marcus Fraser of Australia.”

Woods pulling out of the event, which comes as no surprise, follows similar decisions not to play at the Masters and the U.S. Open earlier this year. Recovery from surgeries and a nagging back injury continue to sideline Woods, whose 14 major championships by 2008 made him a likely breaker of Jack Nicklaus’s record of 18. But he remains stuck at 14 nearly a decade later, with the notion of playing in a tournament, let alone winning a major, serving as his primary motivation.

Woods last competed more than 10 months ago at the Wyndham Championship. He has endured two back surgeries since then. After enjoying a number-one ranking for most of the 21st century’s first decade, Woods now sits at 594.

Although Woods released no statement about skipping the tournament at Royal Troon, the three-time Open winner said last month: “I am making progress, but I’m not yet ready for tournament competition,” noting that he “continue[s] to work hard on getting healthy.”

The 145th Open Championship takes place from July 14-17 at Royal Troon Golf Club Old Course in Ayrshire, Scotland.